


That Don't Define Who You Are

by lululawrence



Category: BBC Radio 1 RPF, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alpha Louis Tomlinson, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe, Anxiety, Attraction, Beta Nick Grimshaw, Broken Mating Bond, Communication, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Healers, Healing, Hospitals, Hurt/Comfort, Insecure Harry, M/M, Minor Injuries, Multi, Nervous Harry, No Smut, Omega Harry Styles, Protective Louis Tomlinson, Scenting, Worldbuilding, it's very short if that's what you're here for you'll be disappointed i'm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:15:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28444509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lululawrence/pseuds/lululawrence
Summary: “Shit,” Harry muttered, rushing towards the man. “Are you alright?”The man clearly tried to muffle his scream. “No, I’m really not. I’m afraid you’ll need to call 999.”When Harry reached the man, he saw the man’s leg had gotten caught by pieces of the bike that had come apart beneath him. Without thinking, Harry leaned down and lapped where the blood was flowing quickly until it slowed.“I’m so sorry, I just didn’t want you to pass out whilst I was on the phone.”“God, no, don’t apologise,” the man said. “My mum’s a licking omega, see. Quite soothing.”Harry blushed. “Yeah. Let me see about an ambulance for you.”Or the one where Harry is a licking omega with a broken bond who helps heal a fairly hapless beta with a folding bicycle. When Harry also meets the beta's alpha, things start to get... interesting.
Relationships: Nick Grimshaw/Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Nick Grimshaw/Louis Tomlinson
Comments: 23
Kudos: 199
Collections: OmegaHarryFicFest





	That Don't Define Who You Are

**Author's Note:**

> Where to even start? This is based off of a fairly simple prompt that I wanted as soon as I saw it. It was basically asking for a triad fic with alpha Louis, preferably including beta Nick. That is just like... MY JAM. Anyway, as you can see, I claimed it. 
> 
> Then I needed to figure out what to do. I trusted that I would get inspiration at some point and let it just sit, and then one day [Sada](https://sadaveniren.tumblr.com) came into a group chat and mentioned that she was reading a fic where the alpha purred. That was all I needed. And now here we are. haha
> 
> Thank you sooooo much to [Nic](https://louandhazaf.tumblr.com) for betaing and [Chelle](https://aslowmotionaccident.tumblr.com) for the Brit pick! All remaining mistakes are mine and mine alone. 
> 
> The title comes from Walking in the Dark by Only the Poets cause I've been listening to it nonstop since like October, so hey. lol Please don't share this fic with anyone in any way associated with the band or Radio 1. I also do not allow any translations or repostings without my express permission. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy!

Harry wasn’t sure when he started feeling… lesser. Maybe it was something that had always been there and he’d never recognised it until he was older and knew just what it was. He knew from the time he was six and should have developed his ability to purr, that he wasn’t what was  _ hoped for _ by most people at any rate.

He overheard his mum’s friends giving their condolences as she tried to argue with them about the fact that licking omegas were nothing to be ashamed of, and he knew. He might be able to still heal others with his care, but it might not be the kind of care they wanted.

He’d told himself when he got older that it was just a matter of finding the right person, the right alpha or beta, and they would be okay with it. More than okay, even. If they were the right mate for him, he hoped they would  _ like _ it.

Still, he did his best to hide it while in the beginning stages of the relationship, if at all possible. Sometimes comments were made, and Harry would just shrug it off and act like he was just shy about sharing his purr. Sometimes things would end before a more in depth discussion came around.

But the times when his healing type were brought up never ended well. 

Until Kian. Kian was wonderful and accepting and kind and Harry was tired by that point. He was exhausted, actually, and all because of previous partners not being willing to accept him as he really was. So Harry decided that on their first date, when he knew he would like to see if it would go anywhere, he would just tell him and let him run away then. At least then Harry wouldn’t be wasting even more time on someone who would just leave him in the end.

Kian stayed. He was so lovely, Harry could hardly believe it. Their relationship was fast and blinding and Harry was in love, or so he thought. They decided to bond, and Harry was over the moon.

Until he wasn’t. He was still basking in Kian’s purrs that he could feel coursing through him, their healing abilities heightened by their new bond, when he nosed around his own mark on Kian’s shoulder and started licking it.

“Babe, what are you doing?” Kian asked, chuckling a little.

“I’m healing your bond bite,” Harry answered, confused by Kian’s reaction. “Just like you’re doing with me.”

“No, not just like I am,” Kian said, shrugging his shoulder when Harry leaned in to continue lapping at the mark. “I’m purring.”

“Yeah…” Harry said slowly. “And I’m licking. Because I can’t purr. Just like we discussed before.”

“Right, yeah,” Kian said, sounding distant. 

Harry watched him carefully before slowly leaning back in towards Kian’s shoulder. He tried one more time, a timid and careful touch of his tongue and that was all it took for Kian to pull away.

“Yeah, I can’t do it.”

Harry watched blankly as Kian climbed out of the bed and walked towards the wardrobe.

“What, you don’t like my caring for you?” Harry asked.

Kian visibly shivered as he pulled on a pair of pants before reaching for his jeans that were still on the floor.

“Yeah, no. I thought I’d be alright with it, but you’d never needed to care for me before so it was all relative, you know? But there’s no way. No. I can’t, I just…” Kian shuddered, making a disgusted face. “No. Sorry, love. But no.”

Harry watched him, shocked. “Wait, this isn’t even something you are going to try to get used to? We literally bonded an hour ago, and at the height of it you’re going to leave?”

Kian paused for a second, like he was thinking about it, and then said, “Yeah. Yep. Basically. It’s still fresh, it should be easy enough to break, right?”

“What?” Harry squawked, jumping out of bed and wrapping himself up in his lilac robe he always kept hanging on the bedpost. “No, Kian, that’s not how this works. A bond is permanent and lasting unless you go through the incredibly painful process of fully breaking it.”

Kian was hurriedly shoving as many of his belongings into his rucksack as he could manage while Harry followed him around.

“Well, I guess we’re going to have to do that then, because I didn’t think it would be, but the licking omega thing is  _ definitely _ a deciding factor after all.”

“What the fuck, you utter knothead,” Harry yelled, wrapping his arms around himself as he tried not to cry. “You couldn’t have figured this out before?”

“Well, I didn’t know!” Kian said, pulling on his shoes. “How was I to know it would feel like  _ that? _ Ya know, it makes sense now why purring omegas are so overwhelmingly preferred to licking omegas.”

“Fuck you,” Harry spat. “You best leave your key, because you don’t have any right to enter my home again.”

“Great,” Kian said, pulling his keys out of his pocket and singling out the one for Harry’s flat. “Because honestly, I didn’t really like your nests either.”

Harry already felt like he could barely breathe, but when Kian added the second horrific insult to what had already broken what Harry thought would be a lifelong bond, he felt like he had just been kicked in the stomach as well.

“Get out of my house,” Harry whispered. “I never want to see you again.”

“Yeah, that’ll help the bond be severed sooner anyway,” Kian said, nonchalantly.

How in the fuck had Harry missed the fact that Kian was this callous? This selfish? It was clear as day now, and he didn’t know if Kian had just been hiding it the whole time or if Harry had been so ecstatic about the fact he supposedly accepted Harry as a licking omega that he overlooked all the signs leading up to this moment. Either way, he knew he would never regret anything so much as he did the choice to bond with such a fucking wanker.

Harry didn’t even wait for Kian to hand him the key. He turned around right then and walked towards his bedroom. He waited inside the door, covering his mouth with his palm until he heard Kian mutter something to himself and drop the key to the floor, slamming the door of the flat behind him as he left.

The pulsing in his shoulder grew as his supposed alpha stormed away, his own inner omega clawing to be let out and race after him. It didn’t understand, and he knew it didn’t. It wouldn’t. It was going to make the next few weeks, if not months, a living hell as Harry worked his hardest to survive the breaking of their fresh bond.

*~~***~~*

_ Six Years Later _

Harry rushed down the street, keeping his head down. It was raining pretty hard, and he’d accidentally left his umbrella at work. He always made sure to have spares on him, but he’d lent all of them out as well, leaving him completely unprotected during yet another of London’s autumn rainstorms.

He just had another two blocks and he’d finally reach the shop he’d found that carried the right brand of pastry cutter he’d been searching for everywhere. He picked up the pace a little, trying his best to blink the rain out of his eyes so he could make sure he wouldn’t run into anyone when suddenly he was slammed into by someone who smelled overwhelmingly of an alpha near rut.

Harry stayed huddled where he was, cowering against the wet wall as the alpha growled and thankfully kept going. 

That was something he’d gotten used to over the years. His omega was so upset over the brand new bond immediately being abandoned and severed that sometimes it took over, especially when it came to fear of alphas. Then again, it was times like this that he had every right to be scared. As a mated and abandoned omega, almost any alpha close enough to rut to have their decision making impared would see him as a viable rut partner, whether he agreed or not.

Harry pressed his hand to his chest as if that would do anything to help slow down his racing heart. His entire body was shaking slightly, but that didn’t matter. He would end up completely ill if he didn’t get to the shop soon.

Just as Harry was about to rejoin the crowds pulsing their way down the street, he heard a curse followed by a scream and a loud crash coming from the alley just around the corner from where he stood.

Unsure whether it was safe for him, Harry peeked around the brick in case it was someone he could actually help. What he saw was a man lying completely tangled up inside of an incredibly mangled bicycle, bleeding and groaning.

“Shit,” Harry muttered, rounding the corner and rushing towards the man. “Are you alright?”

“Fuck, I’m not actually sure,” the man groaned. As Harry got closer, he saw the bike shift a little before the man clearly tried to muffle his scream. “No,” he panted, his eyes squeezed shut. “No, I’m really not. I’m afraid you’ll need to call 999.”

When Harry reached the man, there was a lone light shining nearby, but it was enough for Harry to see that the man’s leg had gotten caught by what looked to be pieces of the bike that had come apart beneath him.

“Fuck, yeah, hang on.”

Without thinking, Harry leaned down and lapped where the blood was flowing, far too quickly to be safe. He licked the wound until the bleeding slowed, and only then did he allow himself to pull back and apologise.

“I’m so sorry,” he said, “I just didn’t want you to pass out whilst I was on the phone.”

“God, no, don’t apologise,” the man said, weakly. He really did look incredibly pale. “My mum’s a licking omega, see. Quite soothing.”

Harry blushed. The man was a beta, judging by his muted scent, which did help Harry to feel a bit better about his instinct to immediately care for him without asking permission. That was one major downside to being a licking omega or a beta. While alphas and purring omegas were able to heal themselves as well as others with their purring, betas and licking omegas were not able to heal themselves. Their caring was only able to help others. He supposed that in dire circumstances, even if a beta didn’t care for licking omegas, it would give him reason to not push away the assistance.

“Yeah. Let me see about an ambulance for you.”

Harry gave their location as best he could, but he was afraid to move the man, Grimmy as he had introduced himself, due to how he was still tangled up in the bike. So, there they waited, hoping the transportation to the hospital wouldn’t take too long.

Determined to stay with him until the ambulance arrived since Grimmy’s phone was ruined, Harry did his best to make the man comfortable, but silence fell over them soon enough.

“Would it be alright if I continued to care for your bruises and smaller cuts I can easily get to?” he asked, twisting his hands nervously. His omega was desperately urging him to continue licking the poor man to help put him out of as much pain as he possibly could, but he didn’t want to do so without his explicit permission.

“God, please?” Grimmy moaned, looking at him with a pleading expression. “I’d appreciate it so much.”

Harry nodded, relieved that he was alright with Harry’s ministrations and immediately started taking care of the man’s scraped up hands.

“So what exactly happened with your bike?” Harry asked, trying to figure out exactly how it worked when it appeared to not fully be connected as it should. He also hoped he would feel less nervous about caring for the man’s wounds if he talked as Harry did it.

Grimmy sighed, rolling his eyes. “It’s all the rage at the BBC right now, and that’s where I work. I’m a producer. Anyway, moral of the story is, do not  _ ever _ let Matt Edmondson convince you that a folding bicycle is the best mode of transportation and to exclusively ride one for work.” 

Harry tilted his head and looked closer. “Isn’t it supposed to lock or something to avoid this happening?”

Grimmy paused. “That… would make sense, actually.”

“How long have you had this?” Harry asked, unsure whether to be impressed that he lasted this long without an accident or distraught that the man hadn’t considered a way to keep the bike together safely whilst riding it.

“Like… three days?” Grimmy said, squishing up his face as he thought about it. “Well, a week, really, but I only got it out for the first time on Tuesday, so.”

“I feel like you’re lucky to be alive,” Harry said, confused. 

Before they could speak any further about the bike, the sound of an emergency vehicle getting closer was heard, and Harry stood up to wave them down.

Rushing out to the street, he waved his yellow clutch in the hope it would attract the attention of the driver.

It worked, and soon they were parked and following Harry to where Grimmy waited for them.

They had Grimmy safely removed from his bike quickly and Harry stood to the side as they got him situated on the stretcher. Just as Harry was trying to say goodbye and continue his trek to the shop, Grimmy yelled out, “Wait!”

Harry froze, mid wave. “What? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I mean, I will be, thanks to you,” Grimmy said, flapping the hand that Harry had so carefully cared for. “But come with me?”

Harry blinked, surprised. “What?”

“Please? Come with me? I hate hospitals, have ever since my dad passed, and you’ve been so kind. I don’t want to be alone, please?” Grimmy’s eyes were wide and pleading before he turned to the alphas carrying him. “You’ll let him join me, yeah?”

One of them shrugged and Grimmy immediately looked back at Harry.

“I mean, if you want me to?”

“I do.” Grimmy nodded his head before wincing and stopping immediately. “Fuck. Yeah, please?”

Harry nodded and reluctantly climbed into the ambulance behind Grimmy. Apparently he’d be spending the evening in A&E with an unfamiliar beta.

*~~***~~*

“I hate to be needy after taking advantage of your caring and then taking over your entire evening, but would it be alright if I used your phone to call my alpha?”

Harry froze as fear and shame equally coursed through him. He hadn’t even bothered to look or pay attention to whether the man had a bondmark. He’d just basically thrown himself at him and cared for him with his disgusting  _ licking _ while the man had an alpha the entire time. What the hell had he been thinking?

“Yeah, of course,” he said, only tripping over his words a little as he shuffled around to get his phone out. “I’m so sorry I was so intimate with the caring while you were claimed. I swear I didn’t mean to cross any boundaries or anything…”

“Oh no,” Grimmy said, waving his hand before taking the proffered phone. “We aren’t like that. I mean, we are. I’m his and he’s mine and all that. He’s my forever. But we don’t feel our bond is complete yet, you know?”

Harry nodded, slowly. He knew there were triads out there who felt the balance of a relationship between an alpha, omega, and beta together was the best fit for them. He’d not actually met anyone like that, though. It was nice to know they really existed. Maybe if there really were people who preferred their dynamic, he actually did have hope to find a mate who wouldn’t mind that he’d been abandoned by his former alpha and that he was a licking omega.

Snorting softly to himself, Harry settled into his chair. He shouldn’t get his hopes up. It had been six years, and he was doing his best to get used to the idea that he would never have a mate again. There were just too many hurdles to overcome at this point.

“Yeah, always trying to find the right omega, but we just haven’t found one yet,” Grimmy murmured as he typed in his alpha’s phone number.

“Lucky omega,” Harry muttered under his breath.

It didn’t take long before Harry heard Grimmy’s alpha cursing through the phone and asking which hospital he had been taken to. Grimmy smiled dopily as he answered all of his alpha’s questions, but Harry didn’t want to pay too close of attention. He’d already made himself far too intimately entwined with the claimed beta, he didn’t need to eavesdrop too.

“Alright, sorry about that,” Grimmy said, holding the phone out with a hitched breath and a wince. “Oh, okay, shouldn’t have moved like that. Alright.”

“You alright?” Harry asked, quickly leaning forward to take his phone back. “Do you need help?”

Grimmy took some more deep breaths before finally looking at Harry again. “I know, I’m a baby, but I really don’t handle pain well, and whatever they gave me in the ambulance took the edge off, but hasn’t  _ really _ helped. Do you mind licking wherever you see bruises starting to show up?”

“I, uh…” Harry was honestly a bit thrown off. He’d only done it before because his omega was practically screaming at him to do it. Well, that, and he was afraid Grimmy would pass out if he lost too much blood. 

It wasn’t like that, now, though. What Grimmy was asking him to do was incredibly intimate.

“I know, I know. I’m asking a lot,” Grimmy whined. “But it’s a soothing thing, you know? I even ask my alpha to do it, even though he obviously purrs.”

Harry knew he was going to say yes from the moment Grimmy asked. There was something about the beta that had Harry wanting to bend over backwards to care for him, so he was glad the beta seemed to want it as well. 

As Harry got to work checking and caring for all of the minor cuts and bruises he could find on Grimmy’s exposed arms and legs, Harry’s anxiety started to spike. What was going to happen when Grimmy’s alpha showed up? He was going to walk into a hospital room with his beta connected to numerous machines and a strange omega caring for him in an incredibly intimate manner. Harry honestly wouldn’t even blame the alpha if he went into a flying rage over it.

Trying to push the spiraling thoughts from his mind, Harry continued to care for Grimmy’s wounds and had just started licking at the bruise that had started to form on Grimmy’s temple when a man came rushing into the room.

“I swear to fuck, Nicholas, I told you that damn bicycle was a death trap,” the alpha ranted as soon as he crossed the doorway.

Harry wasn’t sure what exactly he had been expecting of Grimmy’s alpha. Grimmy was a fairly tall man, quite lanky and with what was obviously a large personality. Harry had just assumed that his alpha would be a large, hulking alpha to match.

Instead, he found a man who was a touch shorter than him, with a petite frame but a loud voice and commanding demeanor. There was absolutely no question the man was an alpha, but his eyes conveyed concern and a gentle nature that was rare to find in betas, much less alphas.

The man was also gorgeous. Harry was suddenly filled with concern over how he looked, considering he’d spent a significant time in the rain without an umbrella and then had been more worried about caring for the beta in the hospital bed than he had about looking after himself. What kind of a first impression was he giving?

“I know, I know,” Grimmy said, sounding both annoyed and relieved. “You can gloat all you want once I’m not in pain anymore, but honestly I feel like shit at the moment, so no need to rub it in. Louis, this is Harry, the incredible omega who found me and cared for me while we waited for the ambulance.”

Harry had been so concerned about Grimmy’s wellbeing up until now, that he hadn’t even paused to take the man in. God, he’d spent most of the last hour or two caring for one of the most beautiful betas he had ever seen. Who just happened to be mated to a gorgeous alpha. What kind of water had they been drinking to end up so stunningly beautiful  _ and _ together? Had Harry been the one who actually hit his head? Maybe he had and now had woken up in an alternate universe where he was surrounded by only the most beautiful men.

“Harry, thank you so much. I cannot fully express how grateful I am that you found him,” Louis said, rushing forward to offer Harry his hand in thanks.

“Oh, it really was no problem. I’m glad I was able to help,” Harry said. 

Louis and Grimmy continued to banter back and forth about his bike, constantly thanking Harry for his attentive care. It almost felt over the top. Harry wondered if someone was playing a cruel joke on him and everything would turn on its head at any moment. It was all too good to be true.

Or, well. Too good to be true outside of the hospital bit. He should probably go, now that Louis was here. He obviously wouldn’t be needed anymore, he didn’t know why he’d even stayed this long. He was always overstaying his welcome and making things awkward, and clearly he had done it once again.

“Oh, god, Lou. Can you please help Harry? He looks like he’s about to pass out.”

Harry came to attention and realised he had sunk so far into his anxiety, that he’d zoned out of their conversation and started shaking. He supposed it made sense. He hadn’t cared for anyone since his former alpha had broken their bond and considering how traumatic of an experience that was for him, it made sense that his body and omega were preparing for the worst.

“Shit. Hey, Harry, are you alright? Look at me, yeah?”

Harry did his best to look into Louis’ blue eyes, but his omega was scared and honestly he was too, even if he’d been given no reason to feel that way as of yet.

“Fuck. Nick, he knows you better, maybe he’ll respond to you. Can you ask him if it’s alright if I scent him? It’s the only thing I know of that might calm him down.”

Harry’s mind whirled. Louis was going to scent him? Why? That was kind of big and serious and Harry had just been caring for his beta by licking his wounds. Wasn’t he going to punish Harry for such actions instead of scenting him?

“Harry, love, can you hear me?”

Harry’s mind fully processed the question a few beats after he asked it and turned to look at Grimmy. 

“There’s a good omega. Well done, love,” Grimmy praised.

Harry’s omega started to calm, and he was able to focus a little better.

“There you are,” Grimmy said, nodding slowly and smiling at him. “Louis’ going to scent you, if you’re alright with that. He just wants you to be able to calm down and relax, okay? You aren’t in trouble, you’ve done nothing wrong.”

Harry nodded, still not feeling up to speaking. His entire body felt tense and like he wasn’t fully in control. If Louis scenting him would help with that, then he would more than welcome it.

“Yeah? It’s alright if I scent you?” Louis double checked. 

Harry turned and looked at him, finding nothing but concern in his eyes. He nodded once more.

Louis smiled at him before slowly moving into Harry’s space and placing his nose at the base of Harry’s neck. He ran it up and down along the side slowly, breathing deeply. As he did so, Harry’s body shivered and then began to relax into the alpha’s arms.

“There we are,” Louis praised. “You worked so hard caring for Nick and you did such a good job. Now we need to return the favour and make sure you’re cared for.”

Harry whined a little, and closed his eyes. He felt so safe. Louis began to purr as he licked Harry’s neck to further scent him, and it was like nothing Harry had ever experienced in his life, but particularly not in the past six years. The scent of Louis’ alpha grounded Harry and the constant rumble of his purring helped his omega to finally settle, content.

That, of course, was when the doctor chose to arrive.

“Hello, Nick and Mr and Mr Tomlinson. I’m Dr. Hanks. I just wanted to have a quick look at where the major problem areas lie so we know which X-rays to order.”

Harry felt so inexplicably tired that he was responding to everything sluggishly, but he did know that the doctor had just assumed he was their omega. He supposed it made sense, considering he’d walked in on Louis scenting him during a stressful situation. Harry probably would have made the same assumption if it were him.

He had to correct the doctor, though. It was well past time for him to get going too. He needed a long night’s sleep to recover from everything that had happened and try to forget the beautiful, funny, kind men.

“Actually,” Harry finally was able to say, making the doctor pause and look in his direction. “I—”

Louis latched his hand around Harry’s wrist, and Harry turned to him with wide eyes in shock.

An alpha only did that with their mated omega. He had never seen any alpha outside of a bond touch an omega in such a way.

“It’s alright, love,” Louis said, his eyes boring into Harry’s. He knew Louis was trying to tell him something, he just didn’t know what it was. “The doctor will be able to see what a good job you did caring for our beta on his own.”

Harry furrowed his brows in confusion. What was Louis on about? There was no way he would ever even begin to brag about how well he had cared for anyone, but the way Louis had said  _ our _ beta also made so many questions start running through his head he could hardly focus on a single one.

Soon enough the doctor had finished with his questioning of Grimmy about his accident and left, reassuring them that a nurse would be in soon to take him in for his X-rays.

As soon as the doctor was gone, Harry turned to Louis wanting answers. He might feel settled and calm thanks to his scenting, but that didn’t mean that Louis could avoid answering his questions.

“What was that?” Harry asked, looking between them. “I thought he should know that I’m not part of your bond.”

“If he knew that, he wouldn’t let you stay, though,” Grimmy said, simply. “I’d really like you to stay, if that’s okay.”

“I… you do?” Harry asked. “Why? You don’t even know me and Louis is here now, so you don’t have to be alone.”

Louis reached out and tentatively picked up Harry’s hand, holding it gently between both of his.

“We have a feeling about you, and we don’t want to lose you before we can see if our hunch is correct,” Louis explained softly. “Do you mind waiting around with us and once we get out of here we can go back to ours and talk a little bit more?”

Harry looked between the two of them, and both seemed to be genuine. It still made little to no sense to him, but he was drawn to the men. His omega was as well, practically urging him to sink into Louis’ side now that he was sitting in the chair beside him.

“Yeah, if you’re sure that’s fine.”

“We promise, it is,” Louis assured him.

So Harry nodded, and allowed himself to lean on the alpha. If he was going to spend even longer in A&E at their request, the least they could do was allow him a good cuddle.

*~~***~~*

“Welcome to our humble abode,” Louis said, making Grimmy snort and then whine. 

Thankfully nothing had been broken and thanks to Harry’s caring, the doctors said he would mostly be sore as he recovered. Very, very sore.

“Stop being so funny,” he whined before gingerly sitting down on the sofa as Louis gathered pillows to help prop him up in a comfortable position. “I can’t help but laugh at you and then I hurt.”

“I wasn’t even trying to be funny, love,” Louis said, shaking his head. “It’s just a saying. And why were you laughing anyway?”

“Because your flat is massive and brand new?” Harry said. He honestly felt a little overwhelmed. He knew Grimmy was a producer at the BBC, but what did he produce? And what did Louis do? They either were born into money or they both made incredibly good money to afford a place like this. Harry’s own flat could fit inside their living room. 

“Exactly, thank you, young Harold,” Grimmy said before sucking in some air through his teeth as he shifted a little. “Not really a modest place you got for us here, alpha. But that’s okay, because I know you picked it out special for us, and I love it.”

Louis looked at Grimmy, clearly exasperated but also very fond. “I did, thank you. Anyway, that’s not what we’re here for.”

Harry swallowed nervously and gave a tight smile. This was what he’d been nervously waiting for, and he wasn’t really sure what they were going to say. Louis had said they had a hunch about him, but he didn’t really understand what that meant.

“Louis, will you cuddle him and care for him or something to make him more comfortable?” Grimmy suggested. “Honestly, can’t you tell when an omega is stressed?”

“I was making sure you were situated first,” Louis argued, before holding his hand out and making eye contact with Harry. “Are you okay with a cuddle? Maybe some caring?”

Harry nodded, and he wished he were a little less eager than he was, but if cuddles and caring were being offered he was going to take advantage. He didn’t know when the next opportunity would come for him to be treated so well. 

Louis took his hand and gently led him over to the matching sofa that sat at an angle to the one Grimmy was on, making sure to sit as far over as they could to make it easy for Grimmy to see them. 

“There you go, love,” Louis said as he pulled Harry in closer. Harry’s back was to Louis’ chest and no sooner were Louis’ arms around his waist than he started purring. 

Harry’s every muscle relaxed and Louis hummed happily. 

“You two look so perfect together,” Grimmy said, smiling contently at them. “Lou, do you want to start us off?”

“Nick said he told you that we’ve been looking for an omega to complete our bond,” Louis said gently, running his nose in Harry’s hair exactly how he loved it. “What do you think about triad bonds?”

“I think it’s great, even if you’re the first bondmates I’ve met who are interested in a third,” Harry answered, sleepily. He was so comfortable he was getting tired quickly, but his mind was incredibly alert, thankfully. He just couldn’t figure out where this conversation was going. 

“That’s great, but I meant you personally. For yourself?” Louis asked, and that was what it took for Harry to realise what they meant.

“Wait, me?” Harry looked at Grimmy waiting for confirmation, but he just looked at Harry confused. Why was Grimmy confused? Harry was the one who had been left by his previous alpha with a bleeding and fresh bond that was immediately broken. There was no way the two most kind, gentle, funny, accepting, and beautiful men would be interested in  _ him. _

“Of course, you,” Louis said, his purring getting louder to soothe Harry into relaxing again. “Why are you so surprised we’re interested? You are so kind and generous and caring, not to mention truly gorgeous. We’ve both been incredibly confused how your previous alpha let you go.”

“Shit,” Harry whispered, starting to breathe quickly to match his racing heart, despite Louis’ purring. “I didn’t know you two had seen my bond.”

He closed his eyes and tried his best to calm down, but he knew this was when they’d judge him. It was when  _ everyone _ judged him. He’d just get kicked out of their nice flat as fast as they could do so without being rude, and then he’d be left wondering if all of it was a dream. 

“Yeah, we saw it,” Louis said, gently. “Listen, we just want to know what happened, if you’re okay with sharing that.”

“Yeah, we’re in no place to judge,” Grimmy said, echoing Louis’ sentiment. “His mum’s been bonded to two different alphas and my brother’s got two omegas, one of which has been bonded twice before. Everyone’s got their own story. We just want to know yours.”

Harry nodded. Maybe they would be the ones to understand, but he knew at some point they would reach the limit of being the exception to nearly every rule Harry had ever encountered in people.

“Well, erm, you know that I’m a licking omega,” he said, swallowing a little.

Harry tilted his neck to the side as Louis started scenting him again. It helped, even more so than the purring. Harry felt much better now, even as he focused on where Harry’s bondmark was. 

“I got to the point where I would share that first thing with any betas or alphas I was dating, because it’s such a deal breaker for so many people. I finally met someone who said that was fine, they didn’t mind.” 

Harry paused. He hadn’t told this story in years. He’d given up trying to date, and therefore the only people in his life that mattered already knew. It was just as hard to share now as it had been back when it was still fresh and even more painful.

“But they did, didn’t they?” Grimmy asked, gently prodding Harry to continue.

Nodding, Harry answered. “Yeah. Our relationship went quickly and we decided to bond before we ever had a need to care for each other. I was caring for his bondmark to help it heal, and he said he couldn’t do it and left. That was the last time I saw him.”

Grimmy’s eyes were huge, his entire body frozen and Harry could feel Louis’ anger. His entire body was tense and it felt like waves of rage were bowling over Harry. He couldn’t handle the thought that Louis was so upset that it made Harry want to submit just to appease him. All he knew was that fighting his omega’s intuition to calm the alpha before harm came to them was too hard, he wouldn’t be able to do it for much longer.

Harry accidentally let a whine escape and he tried pulling away from Louis to give himself some distance from the angry alpha. 

“Oh, love, no. I’m sorry,” Louis immediately apologised, pulling Harry in closer and starting to purr again. 

Harry was so confused, and his omega wasn’t any better. “Aren’t you mad at me? Don’t you want me to leave now that you know?”

“Now that I know how horrifically your former alpha treated you? Of course I don’t want you to leave. I want to track that animal down and cause him some serious pain, is what I want to do. He deserves to have his knot removed!” Louis exclaimed.

“Louis,” Grimmy chided. “Don’t go all medieval on us, that’s disgusting.”

“It’s true, though,” Louis argued. “He had the trust and love of such a good omega, the  _ best _ omega, and he threw it away at a time when he was needed most, because he couldn’t handle the most loving and intimate form of caring? What the fuck?”

“So,” Harry ventured to say after Louis’ purring picked up again and he felt safe again, “you aren’t mad at me?”

“No, of course not,” Louis said, nuzzling into Harry again. “Harry… we…”

Louis stopped talking, and Harry felt like he was sitting on pins. They what?

“Oh fine, just stop your begging,” Grimmy said out of nowhere. 

What begging?

“Harry, we are absolutely not mad at you. Might break every limb of that alpha’s body, but not at you. We actually think…”

When Grimmy trailed off again, clearly looking at Louis, Harry started to lose his patience. 

“Can one of you just say it?” he huffed, shifting so he could look Louis in the eyes as well. “It has been a very long day and I’ve felt like I need to cry for awhile now, so I would appreciate it if you’d put me out of my misery and then let me get home to do so in peace.”

“Oh, love,” Louis said, leaning in to press his forehead against Harry’s temple.

Then, Harry was surprised.

_ Nick and I are soulmates, and we think you’re our third. _

It was Louis’ voice, clear as day, but inside Harry’s head. He gasped and pulled away from Louis so he could look at him again.

“What was that?” Harry asked, breathless. “How… I could hear you, but you didn’t say anything.”

“I knew it,” Grimmy cheered, before cursing. “Fuck, I need more meds, they’re definitely wearing off.”

“I can’t believe we finally found you,” Louis said, face filled with wonder. “Nick and I can communicate without speaking if we’re in generally the same space. We’d felt a special connection we had never felt with anyone before as soon as we met, and thought it was just the signs we were meant to be bondmates. But then we bonded…”

“We bonded, and suddenly we were able to do like Louis did with you now,” Grimmy finished. “We don’t really know how it works or why. We’ve done a lot of research and there aren’t any records of anyone else being quite like us, but we’re sure there are. We can’t be the only ones. We just knew there was something missing, so we kept looking for our omega. And as soon as you came rushing over and started caring for me, I knew. We’d been searching for  _ you.” _

“Soulmates,” Harry said, feeling incredibly overwhelmed. “Soulmates?”

Louis pressed his forehead against Harry’s, and Harry knew what to expect this time.

_ Soulmates, Harry. _

Harry didn’t pull away this time. Instead, he wanted to give it a try. Concentrating as best he could, he closed his eyes and thought of what exactly he wanted to say to Louis.

_ I feel like I’m dreaming. _

“Definitely not dreaming, omega,” Louis said fondly. “You’re a fast learner.”

Harry opened his eyes. “You two really are okay that I’ve got a broken bond?” He just couldn’t believe that what had been so important for everyone else was something even soulmates could overlook.

“Of course we are,” Louis said, sitting up straight, but never fully breaking the physical connection the two of them had. He started ranting about gender roles within bonds and societal norms within those roles, even continuing as he stood up to go to the kitchen for Grimmy’s painkillers and some water.

“That was why I properly fell in love with him, you know,” Grimmy said, smiling at Harry. “He cares so much about things most alphas don’t because society is built to suit them, but Louis? He wants to make the world better.”

“Here you go, beta,” Louis said, apparently over his rant by the time he reentered the room from the kitchen. He leaned over, pressing a kiss to the top of Grimmy’s head, and Harry practically swooned. “Should get you to bed soon. Need you to rest properly.”

Fucking hell.  _ Soulmates. _

“So, you’ll go on a date with us for real, right?” Grimmy asked before swallowing his tablets. “Spending an evening together at A&E doesn’t count. Our soulmate deserves to be wined and dined.”

“Or in your case, just dined. Can’t have alcohol whilst on that level of painkiller,” Louis said.

“A date?” Harry croaked. It seemed ridiculous that after such a revelation as soulmates, it was them asking him on a date that fully tripped him up.

“Didn’t we make that clear?” Louis asked, turning to look at Harry, surprised. “Love, omega, you deserve all the best things in life. We want to be the ones to give it to you, but we aren’t going to pressure you into this. We’re interested in you, completely. But are you interested in us?”

“Yes,” Harry said, as emphatically as he could. “Yes, please. I’m very interested. It’s just hard to let it all sink in.”

“Well, I guess that just means we will have to do our best to convince you of it,” Louis said, smiling.

*~~***~~*

Louis unlocked the door to their flat and juggled the new packages that had been delivered. It looked like Nick had been shopping while unable to sleep again.

“Harry, love, where are you?” Louis called out once he got the door closed. It was the heat of summer and their flat never seemed to be able to get cool enough for their omega to keep comfortable when seven months pregnant. He’d taken to all sorts of remedies to stay cool, so Louis never knew where he would be.

“In the nursery,” Harry answered.

Louis really should have known. He picked up the packages that had come in and carried them to the nursery where they were most likely to be unpacked later tonight anyway. When he turned in, Harry was happily sorting clothes into piles that made sense to him if no one else whilst listening to Nick’s podcast. 

“How were those big meetings you had today,” Harry asked, looking up at Louis with concern. 

Louis set the packages down and walked by Harry’s nest that had been slowly growing in the corner. It was so perfectly Harry, Louis could already see him settled in there with their pups, nursing one whilst Louis or Nick helped with the other. 

Pulling himself from his reverie, Louis settled himself behind Harry so he could help support his back as he sat on the floor. Once he was comfortable and knew Harry was too, he pressed a kiss to the bondmarks Louis and Nick had given Harry to cover his previous mark and smiled. 

_ Well enough that I don’t want to think about meetings for work while I’m at home. How are the babies? _

Harry hummed, and Louis couldn’t help but purr. “Active. I swear, they’re trying to bruise me from the inside.”

“Sounds about right,” Louis said, chuckling. “And you?”

Harry leaned fully into Louis, resting his arms on top of Louis’. “So spoiled and perfectly happy.”

“Sounds pretty damn good for a Wednesday,” Louis teased.

_ Yeah. Pretty damn good. _

Letting Nick’s voice surround them in the space, Louis closed his eyes and let himself bask in their omega’s presence.

Yeah. Life really was pretty damn good.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! If you liked it, please consider leaving a kudos, a nice comment, and maybe even [reblogging the fic post](https://lululawrence.tumblr.com/tagged/my-fic-post).


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